Excuse Me...Do I Know You? (Assignment 5)

After a long, sweaty, dirty diaper stenched, non-airconditioned bus ride from Florence to Pisa, followed by a flight from Pisa to Paris, the last thing I wanted to do was get on the cramped subway for an hour. However, that’s exactly what we had to do in order to get to the part of Paris that we wanted. So, as we hopped on the Subway, I managed to find a place to sit, one of the last small, fold-out seats placed inconveniently directly next to where people enter and exit the subway. However, as more and more people entered, I decided it would be polite of me to stand up and make as much room as possible for those struggling to fit inside.

After we’ve passed a number of stops (and by that I mean way too many), while also being trampled by people coming and going, we reach another stop, where a (what seemed to be) local French boy, roughly 18 years old, steps on. He manages his way past the people in the doorway, and stands directly in front of me. As we all know, the subway forces you to become beyond close with strangers, due to a complete lack of space, as so many people utilize this public transportation system. So, as the boy stands closely in front of me, I don’t think all too much of it. That is until I look down towards my feet and notice his pale hand reaching behind his back. I look down and almost immediately think he’s trying to pickpocket me, my pockets and purse only inches away from his lower back. After being warned about pick-pocketers an unnecessary amount of times on this trip, I couldn’t help but assume that’s what his aim was. So I attempt to step back a bit. I see his hand reaching behind his back again, low and discreetly. However, clearly not discreetly enough. I step back a bit more. He reaches back a third time, this time turning around with a creepy smirk on his face, implying that he was doing something he thought I actually enjoyed. He wasn’t trying to pickpocket me. He was trying for something else. Who did he think he was? Who did he think I was?! I’m not sure what his mother taught him, but I know damn well that my brothers were taught to respect women. As he grazes the side of my leg with his hand, I say “excuse me!” aloud and immediately step away as far as I can manage while in this overcrowded train car. I can’t help but immediately think back to when I watched the movie “Taken.” A movie based on two innocent, American girls, sharing a cab with a stranger, which ultimately leads to their kidnapping. I know relating my situation to this may be a stretch, but even the simplest of encounters can lead to danger. I felt disgusted. I felt violated. I was insulted and offended that he was so quick to assume that a random stranger, who was also clearly an American girl, would go for something like that. Immediately repulsed by all French guys, I thanked the Lord when he got off at the next stop.

Interview wth Marion (Assignment 3)

An avid fan of CSI, break-dancing, and the Statue of Liberty, 14-year-old Marion Rohé of Dijon, France is beyond anxious to embark on a journey to the United States, preferably in the near future. Marion, daughter of Sylvie and Manu Rohé and oldest of three girls, has lived in Dijon for her entire life, although moving from one house to another about seven years ago. While she doesn’t mind Dijon (besides going to school), Marion has excitedly pondered the idea of studying in the United States ever since Rebecca Cassidy of Cincinnati, Ohio spent an entire semester of high school as Marion’s new “sister”. The Rohé family was Rebecca’s host family during her time in Dijon, taking on the role of their fourth daughter.
As these two girls grew closer, Rebecca was able to share much with Marion about the United States. Already an avid fan of many American tv series’, including CSI, NCIS, and Alias, Marion is eager to explore other aspects of the life of those across the ocean. When asked her favorite thing about the United States, the words “The Statue of Liberty” immediately come to mind. “In France we learn in English class about the Statue of Liberty every year. France gave the statue to the U.S.”.
As Freshman year quickly approaches, Marion hopes to visit her new “sister” and lifetime friend in Cincinnati “right away.” The real question is whether it will live up to her expectations!

As The Train Boards (Assignment 2)

Sad as it was, our trip to Munich had come to a conclusion and it was time to head back to Florence. After a fabulous weekend, we boarded our 9 p.m. train with some time to spare. After settling into our cabin, I decided to spend some time in public aisle ways of the train, knowing how much time would be spent in the tiny cabin all night. As I sit here and observe the hustle and bustle of those hoping to make it onto the train on time, many things come to my attention. First I notice the numerous amounts of people completely confused with how the system works, which train car they belong in, along with which cabin they’re supposed to attempt to sleep in. As couples, old and young, walk up and down the aisles of this not-so-spacious, roasting hot train car, I can only hope for their sake that they aren’t where they belong, knowing the noise levels that us college students can reach as we stay up late into the night. However, what really caught my attention was a guy who looked frighteningly similar to the guy from the “Saw” movie series, who goes by “Jigsaw”. In no way am I trying to judge this man, but as he crept back and forth down the aisle, I grew more and more concerned with the fact that he knew which room I was standing outside of. His short, plump stature, round and overly sunburnt face, along with his white “clownish” receding hairline was enough for anyone to draw this conclusion.



Soon enough, I overheard a conversation between this man and the train attendant. The conversation went something as such:

“Is there any way I can get off for a bit before we leave and go get a beer at a bar?” – Jigsaw look-alike
“No sir, we’re leaving soon”- Attendant
“Well is there anywhere on this train that I can get a beer or some water?”- Jigsaw look-alike
“You will have to go up about four cars to get anything to drink” – Attendant

Why did it not surprise me that he was looking for booze? As he managed his way past me for the fourth or fifth time in a matter of minutes, I began to wonder so many things. Who was he with? Where was he headed? Does he have a criminal record?

As I finally headed back inside my cabin and told my five roommates about this encounter, they reminded me to lock the door. However, it was of no surprise that around 2 a.m., as two of us escorted each other to the bathrooms down the hall, there he was, mysteriously going to the same place at the same time.

Venice: Our 1st Adventure (Assignment 1)

This past weekend, the group and I made the three and a half bus ride over to Venice. We then had to take a boat to get to the place we were staying, seeing as you can only get so far before cars disappear and all transportation is done via the Venetian Canals. We left around 8:00 on Friday morning and arrived at our hostel in the early afternoon. From there on out, we went on long walking tours, ate more Italian food, went to the beach, explored the shopping, soaked up the sun, sweat a lot, and tried to observe as much of the culture as we could. After a busy weekend, we loaded back onto the boat to head back to Florence. However, we stopped at two other Islands first, where we witnessed an amazing glass blowing demonstration and saw the beautiful lace that Burano is famous for. After an hour and a half boat ride, followed by a 3 and a half hour bus ride, we finally safely arrived back to Florence. As amazing as it was to see such a beautiful place, I think we were all ready to get back to Florence at the conclusion of the weekend.

One of the most notable things about the people that I’ve encountered in both Florence and Venice is the way they dress. Although the styles and fashion aren’t all that different from that of the United States, it always surprises me when I see locals walking around comfortably in pants or long sleeves, while I’m struggling to keep coherent in the heat while wearing shorts and a t-shirt. Of course they are used to the heat seeing as they live here. However, during my summers in Cincinnati, it is also equally as hot and just as humid if not more so. Wouldn’t that mean that I would adjust? Not at all. I struggle through the heat of a Cincinnati summer and can think of nothing more miserable than wearing pants when it’s over 70 degrees. The Italians are very comfortable with the heat and never seem show any signs of being bothered by how hot it is. We have been told that air conditioning isn’t as common over here, which could explain why they have adjusted so well. That being said, I can’t imagine living here year round and managing to wear pants into July without being absolutely miserable. A very interesting thing to encounter.

Making purchases in Italy has been nothing but an interesting task thus far. Regardless of whether I’m buying a piece of pizza or a piece of jewelry, “easy” is not a word I would use in describing my spending. First, there is the obvious difference in currency. Although it’s easy to act as if you’re using American money, those you are buying from are very particular about what bills you use and if you have any change. I can’t count the number of times I have handed them a dollar bill, whether it be a 5, 10, 20, or 50, and they have immediately asked if I had change instead. Maybe they all just seem to be short on “change”- I don’t know. I was just very fascinated at how often they requested that we use coins, when a majority of us in America absolutely hate carrying or using change. I will say that the 1 and 2 Euro coins come in handy and it’s always a nice surprise to find them at the bottom of my wallet when buying gelato!

One of the most interesting conversations that I had was actually with a German boy. While sitting next to him, we struck up a simple conversation and found out where each other was from. He was a 17 year old high school student. While talking to this boy, I asked many questions about both Germany and Europe in general. I also asked him about his impression of Americans and what he thinks of those from the United States. His response was very, very surprising. He told me that Americans often come across “overly” polite and are always saying things such as “sorry” or “excuse me” and actually described this behavior as annoying. I was beyond shocked to hear this, because it’s not very often that you hear of us Americans being “overly” polite; I would actually assume they thought quite the contrary of us. That being said, I have begun to more understand what he was referring to. While on the many “boat buses” throughout Venice, the bus would be extremely crowded and many of us would have to stand. I constantly found myself apologizing to those I would brush against with my bag or those that I was in the way of. I was very surprised to find that those around me did not do the same. I was constantly bumped into, sometimes harder than others, and would get nothing but a look saying “get out of my way” rather than an “excuse me” or a look of apology. Would I consider myself overly friendly? Polite is the word. If you find it annoying, I will do nothing but apologize again, which will probably annoy you further…forgive me. In all seriousness though, I found this fairly surprising and was often offended by their lack of care for the inconvenience they caused others, and the animosity they had towards those inconveniencing them.

One amazing place that we observed was the Doge’s Palace. Although we were all extremely hot and exhausted by the time we arrived at the palace for the tour, it was still an amazing experience and such a historical landmark. Between the architecture, the layout, the artwork, and the detail put into the design, this is one place I will surely never forget visiting. An entryway made entirely of 24 karat gold was only one of hundreds of beautiful aspects that this tour had to offer. Not only that, but we also got to see the basement in which prisoners were held. This area definitely gave off an eerie vibe, and is not somewhere I’d like to be alone even during the day time. With a musty smell and dark stone “rooms” (or torture chambers), the life of a prisoner couldn’t have been enjoyable. It took us two hours to get through the entire palace and I wish I had taken even more pictures.

If I had to write a story based on my visit to Venice, it would begin with something as such:

Gorgeous. Beastly hot. Breathtaking. Exhausting. Life changing. This is just a small number of adjectives I’d use to describe the few days I spent in Venice. Did I really just return from a weekend in a place I have only read about in history books?

Altogether, this weekend was an awesome experience. Aside from the misery of the heat that we all experienced, how often can you say that you spent the weekend in Venice and toured the Venetian islands? So lucky to have this experience.

We Have Arrived

Well...here we are. I am writing this from my bed in Florence, Italy. Never really thought this day would come! But alas, we arrived Tuesday evening after a very eventful, almost frightening taxi ride to our "home" for the next seven weeks. It's kind of hard to call this place home when we're only here for 3-4 days a week, but we'll just stick with calling it that anyways. The rest of our time is spent being nomadic as we make our way throughout Italy and Europe!

First two days here have been filled with introductions, orientation, big meals, lots of bread, and even more walking. Oh...and a lot of heat. Luckily it cools down a lot at night because it is HOT out there during the day. It probably doesn't help that we go on two hour walking tours of the city, but how else are we to find our way around? After a nice dinner party on the top of a fancy hotel last night, Liza and I settled back in to catch up on more sleep. Today is likely to be the first day that I feel almost fully adjusted to this time difference.

This weekend is our first trip away. Destination: Venice! We will leave tomorrow morning at 8:00 am, load up the buses, and make the 3 hour drive to Venice, where we will then travel via boat to our hotel. Saturday we are going to do more "touring" of the area, followed by heading to the beach!! Sunday will be a long boat tour throughout the Venetian Canals, and we will head back to Florence on Sunday afternoon! I'm confident that this trip will prove nothing short of fantastic and beautiful.

Things I miss from home so far: lucky charms. baxter. oh...and some people :)

Ciao for now.

Let's Do This.

The day has officially arrived. Well, in a few hours that is. Only one (hopefully) good night's sleep lies between me and the "trip of a lifetime" that I have signed up for. I think it's safe to say that many emotions have overcome me in preparation of tomorrow. Excitement has been building since my neighbor/long time best friend Eliza told me she was going on this trip and quickly convinced me that I should do the same- what a friend. Although now that the day has finally arrived, it's also safe to say that the nerves have begun to set in. Am I worried that I'm not going to have an absolutely incredible time? Absolutely not. I know that this is going to be one of the best experiences of my life and am so grateful that this is something I'm able to do this summer. That being said, I'm also not the biggest fan of flying. I'm not one of those that absolutely dreads flying and will be anxious the entire time we're in the air. But I'm also not one of those flying fanatics, loving the fact that we're beyond thousands of feet above land for up to 9 hours. Hell, I didn't even really enjoy the 4 1/2 hour flight to San Diego. That being said, the anticipation of our arrival in Italy (well...Frankfurt first) will definitely help ease my "anxiety" when it comes to taking off.

Aside from the fact that I'm not nearly packed, I am so beyond excited for this adventure to begin. I had an amazing weekend leading up to my departure. Additionally, my brothers had me over for "Italian" night, with the American version of Italian food (aka pizza!). And if that wasn't enough, my brothers, their wives, and my grandpa came over for a "farewell" dinner tonight, fully equipped with red, green, and white balloons and many books on the Italian culture. Thanks, Mom :). I couldn't be more ready to embark on a journey that I've anticipated for these last few months. Here we go...there's no turning back now.